It sounds more like quite the opposite- a buzz created by the original actors so they can get more money.

Either way I hope the original cast sticks around, because without them the show is pretty much done.

Well the following is advertised as part of comic-con:

Sat Jul 25 1:00-1:45 Futurama: Life or Death?! Be a part of sci-fi history! Join executive producers Matt Groening and David X. Cohen, and stars Billy West, Katey Sagal, John DiMaggio, and Maurice LaMarche for high-stakes thrills as a top-ranking FOX executive decides live, on stage, whether Futurama will make yet another triumphant return or whether it is gone forever! The very fate of Futurama hangs in the balance! Paramedics will be standing by in case the intense excitement causes any panelists to collapse. Raucous celebration or abject despair to follow the news. Ballroom 20

Sat Jul 25 1:00-1:45 Futurama: Life or Death?! Be a part of sci-fi history! Join executive producers Matt Groening and David X. Cohen, and stars Billy West, Katey Sagal, John DiMaggio, and Maurice LaMarche for high-stakes thrills as a top-ranking FOX executive decides live, on stage, whether Futurama will make yet another triumphant return or whether it is gone forever! The very fate of Futurama hangs in the balance! Paramedics will be standing by in case the intense excitement causes any panelists to collapse. Raucous celebration or abject despair to follow the news. Ballroom 20

That's funny. That puts a little different perspective on the whole issue of the possibility of the show returning without the main cast. It sounds very much like the whole "crisis" is to generate buzz and that the cast is very much in on the joke. I hope that's the case.

I distinctly recall hearing years ago that Matt and the boys kept in mind the way The Simpsons' cast was able to hold the show hostage with their demands for more money, and that they wrote the contracts for Futurama so that this could not occur again.

But people are willing to kill the idea of it, in their mind, not only before it is confirmed, but before they even give the new voice artists a chance. I think that's ridiculous. It's entertainment. Thousands of people think the highlight of entertainment is the live stage, where different actors bring the same characters to life, in different cities, from one revival to the next, and so on. The character is not the actor; the actor plays the character.

Variety is now chiming in on theFuturama situation, and it looks like this is indeed the real deal, as in not any sort of hoax. Variety confirms that the show has a dramatically slashed budget, and that the salary offers made to the cast were far below what they were asking - which Variety says was likely around $75,000 an episode. The budget cuts (compared to what the show had when it originally was produced) have also led to a smaller writing staff and a shorter schedule to produce episodes.

As for it not being the same show with different voice actors - WRONG. The voices brought the characters to life. Different actors will bring a different life to them, one I couldn't care less about. There's still time for the original actors to take a much lower salary than they asked for, but its not looking good.

Why aren't people directing their anger at the actors, who refused to change their salary expectations to be commensurate with the change in network from one of the big four broadcast networks to Comedy Central, which doesn't even break the top 10 list of cable networks?

Why aren't people directing their anger at the actors, who refused to change their salary expectations to be commensurate with the change in network from one of the big four broadcast networks to Comedy Central, which doesn't even break the top 10 list of cable networks?

Why should we begrudge working profressionals because they try to make what they think they're worth? Regardless of what cable network the first showing is on, I bet FOX still handles the HOME distribution rights, and I bet that makes all the difference here.

XBOX Live: WagmmanPSN: WaggBFBC2: WagmanSteam: Wag

My Second Life character looks and acts exactly like me except he can fly.

Why should we begrudge working profressionals because they try to make what they think they're worth?

There is no rational logic for supporting the actors as you've described and not similarly supporting the production company and network trying to make what they think they're worth, as well. You cannot have it both ways, without being an actors' apologist. Let the market decide who is worth what and not begrudge anyone their business decisions.

There is no rational logic for supporting the actors as you've described and not similarly supporting the production company and network trying to make what they think they're worth, as well. You cannot have it both ways, without being an actors' apologist. Let the market decide who is worth what and not begrudge anyone their business decisions.

Look, I'm sure most of the regulars here know how you feel from your long time posts in the forums and it's not even worth arguing with you about this point.

The fact is, Futurama has a huge fanbase (considering it was only on for 4 seasons) and has made plenty of money for FOX in home sales, and just would not be the same without any of its main cast members.

XBOX Live: WagmmanPSN: WaggBFBC2: WagmanSteam: Wag

My Second Life character looks and acts exactly like me except he can fly.

I agree: It wouldn't be the same. Rather, it would be just like a brand-new series, that has the same premise as one that you thought highly-enough about the last time to check it out and stick with it for years. It was good enough last time; so there is no reason it cannot be good enough this time.

My concern is how so many people set themselves up to be disappointed -- poisoning the pool -- out of some misguided loyalty to actors, who really, in this case, made their decision to decline the offer to return, not based on their feelings for you, their fans, but rather made their decision to decline the offer to return based on the money.

I agree: It wouldn't be the same. Rather, it would be just like a brand-new series, that has the same premise as one that you thought highly-enough about the last time to check it out and stick with it for years. It was good enough last time; so there is no reason it cannot be good enough this time.

My concern is how so many people set themselves up to be disappointed -- poisoning the pool -- out of some misguided loyalty to actors, who really, in this case, made their decision to decline the offer to return, not based on their feelings for you, their fans, but rather made their decision to decline the offer to return based on the money.

So you think they're bringing the series back out of the goodness of their own hearts? Yeahhhhhhhh I think I'll side with the actors who made the show what it was rather than the giant conglomerate that is out to do nothing but make a buck.

I agree: It wouldn't be the same. Rather, it would be just like a brand-new series, that has the same premise as one that you thought highly-enough about the last time to check it out and stick with it for years. It was good enough last time; so there is no reason it cannot be good enough this time.

It's an assumption that the followers of Futurama initially watched the show because of the premise. In my experience, many folks check out a show because of the actors involved. I'll watch my favorite actors in roles that I otherwise don't find appealing.

Part of the reason Futurama has a cult following (the same as any other show with a cult following) is because the fans have emotional ties to the characters. It would be foolish for Fox to ignore the intrinsic value of these characters' voices just because of a bottom line. If Fox's numbers for this show really are low enough that they cannot afford to pay an amicable price for the original voice talent, they may want to rethink their plans to revive it, as it seems the very people they plan to make money from in this endeavor have been very offended. It would not seem to be a prudent financial move to revive a beloved brand only to offend its followers. That is a waste of time and money. They may as well start from scratch with a new series if they are not interested in being as faithful to the original as its fans would like. They are, after all, the consumers. I suspect that if, somehow a casting change took place and no one discovered it until the first episode aired, many fans would refuse to watch, and Fox would have thrown a decent amount of money down the drain.

I'm not a fan of this show, but this issue has had such an emotional impact for so many people that I've seen in mentioned via many outlets in the past few days.

It's an assumption that the followers of Futurama initially watched the show because of the premise. In my experience, many folks check out a show because of the actors involved. I'll watch my favorite actors in roles that I otherwise don't find appealing.

Part of the reason Futurama has a cult following (the same as any other show with a cult following) is because the fans have emotional ties to the characters. It would be foolish for Fox to ignore the intrinsic value of these characters' voices just because of a bottom line. If Fox's numbers for this show really are low enough that they cannot afford to pay an amicable price for the original voice talent, they may want to rethink their plans to revive it, as it seems the very people they plan to make money from in this endeavor have been very offended. It would not seem to be a prudent financial move to revive a beloved brand only to offend its followers. That is a waste of time and money. They may as well start from scratch with a new series if they are not interested in being as faithful to the original as its fans would like. They are, after all, the consumers. I suspect that if, somehow a casting change took place and no one discovered it until the first episode aired, many fans would refuse to watch, and Fox would have thrown a decent amount of money down the drain.

I'm not a fan of this show, but this issue has had such an emotional impact for so many people that I've seen in mentioned via many outlets in the past few days.

It's sad that Billy West has now gone through this sort of scenario with many of his shows. He had that cartoon series Doug that had been revived by ABC. However, he did not return and the show wasn't the same.
The voice acting is very important for the audience to hear a familiar voice but you can't but help that these actors add more influence in the writing and production of the show because they can use their voice acting skills to create scenes that other actors may not be able to replicate using the same character.